By Friends of the Kotschzmar Organ
PORTLAND (Jan 31): The Friends of the Kotzschmar Organ and organist Dennis James will present “Valentine, You’re It,” a concert benefiting Hearts for Hearing, on Friday, Feb. 8 at 7:30 p.m.

The iconoclastic silent film “It” stars the one who started it all, the original “It Girl,” Clara Bow. Tickets are available at the door at Merrill Auditorium and are a suggested $12 for adults; under 21 free.

Guest organist Dennis James, well-known to Kotzschmar Organ concert attendees, will accompany the film. As a special Valentine’s treat, chocolates and champagne will be available in the lobby at the conclusion of the film.

Bow was born in 1905 in Brooklyn, N.Y. A true rag-to-riches story, she was the only surviving child of a family afflicted with mental illness and poverty. At age 16 she won the Motion Picture Magazine’s “Fame and Fortune” contest, winning her a role in “Beyond the Rainbow.”

The term the “It Girl” can be traced to English romance novelist and screenwriter Elinor Glyn, who created it in reference to Bow. Originally an “It Girl” was a charming, sexy young woman who had just broken into mainstream cinema and was spotted at all the right parties.

Hearts for Hearing's mission is to maximize the abilities of those who are deaf or hard of hearing by providing both the services and the resources for children and adults in order to maximize their auditory potential.